UBS picks Chinese state fund over Ken Griffin’s Citadel Securities for Credit Suisse unit
- UBS will sell a 36.01 per cent holding in Credit Suisse Securities (China) for US$91.4 million to Beijing State-owned Assets Management Co
UBS Group has agreed to sell the majority of its stake in Credit Suisse’s China venture to a Beijing-backed fund, dealing a blow to the ambitions of Ken Griffin’s Citadel Securities to expand in the world’s second-largest economy.
Under the deal, which values the money-losing business at US$253.4 million, the Swiss lender will sell a 36.01 per cent holding in Credit Suisse Securities (China) for US$91.4 million to Beijing State-owned Assets Management Co. Founder Securities will dispose of its entire 49 per cent stake in the venture for US$124 million.
That gives the Beijing firm an 85.01 per cent majority stake, according to a statement. UBS will retain 15 per cent after the sale, confirming an earlier report by Bloomberg News.
The announcement brings the months-long rivalry for Credit Suisse’s investment bank in China to an end, in which Citadel Securities had bid for the firm to help it build a local platform for its market-making capabilities.
The sale is a consequence of UBS’s acquisition of its Swiss rival in an emergency rescue last year, which left it with two domestic brokerages in the country.
“We have had a long-standing presence on the mainland for 35 years and we will continue to expand in this important market,” UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti said in the statement.
